Did you say I love you?
by Beazley
Summary: It had always been there; unspoken but shown among ordinary words and familiar deeds. Shining from the depths of the underlying, love will always come through.
1. Pull over Let me drive for a while

**New Baxley fic. This time it's an idea I got from a Tumblr post about 100 different ways to say "I love you". So basically this is what it's going to be about. Will I get to the 100th?**

 **Please, note that the prompts are not chronollogical/correlative and they may not belong to the same AU. That's totally up to you. What I'm pretty sure is that they will be modern AU.**

 **Once again, English is not my mother tongue, so sorry for any mistakes you can find. Hope they don't interfere with the reading.**

 **Disclaimers: I don't own DA and Baxley**

* * *

 **1 - Pull over. Let me drive for awhile**

She was so pissed off. He had never seen her like that in their 8 years of solid friendship and frankly it was fucking frightening. When she had called him at work telling that she needed to see him, he prayed that he wasn't the cause of her mood.

When he got out at the end of his shift, she was already there, inside her white Toyota. Joseph approached and bent down to look at her from the window.

"Hello stranger" he ventured in a silly attempt to lighten the mood. She remained motionless looking ahead with her fingers griping the steering wheel tightly and literally fuming.

\- Phil? - He was worried now. As she didn't say a word, he decided that it would be better to get into the car. As soon as she heard the click of his seatbelt, she pushed the accelerator to the floor and took off.

Joseph knew how much Phyllis loved driving and that it used to help her as some sort of therapeutic activity. Whenever she had a bad day at work or at home, she took her car and drove off for hours. She had always been a careful driver who never let her anger or frustration cloud her responsibility towards other drivers. But right now, the increasing speed was alarming. Grabbing the door handle and taking a deep breath, he tried again.

"Hey Phyllis, you know you can talk to me. Whatever you need me for, I'm just right here. But you have to slow down"

Her breath was coming in short, irregular gasps, that Joe quickly recognize as one of her panic attacks.

"Hey, hey. It's ok" he soothed placing his hand over hers on the steering wheel. "Just take a deep breath and pull over. Let me drive for a while"

Eventually she did as she was told and pulled the car over the empty road. As soon as it stopped, she hid her face in her hands and began to cry frantically. Joseph unbuckled his seatbelt to be able to get closer to her and tried to steady her with his hand on her back. After five long minutes, she managed to calm down a bit. Drying her eyes with a tissue from him, she took a deep breath.

"Oh fuck" she uttered and he crooked a small smile. That curse was the first symptom of herself coming back and he felt some sort of relief.

"Better?" he asked.

"Yeah, thanks Joe. And sorry about this. I must have scared the shit out you"

"Oh yes definitely" he said joking around while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and using his thumb to wipe a stranded tear from her cheek. "But you know, I was having a pretty dull day at the office so I think it should be me thanking you"

He was so glad to see a genuine smile drawing in her face. He always managed to do that.

"You said you wanted to drive?" she asked, sniffing a bit.

"Yes, but first, I want you to sit in the back" he said reaching out to unbuckle her seatbelt

"Why?" she frowned in confusion not moving from her seat.

"Because I want you to be comfortable while you tell me what the wanker did this time. Now move"

She did as she was told and sat at the back seat, tucking her legs under her and wrapping herself with a blanket she had there. Meanwhile, he had moved to the driver's seat and as soon as he saw from the rear view mirror that she was comfortable, he started the engine.

He drove them across the outskirts, where lines of houses began to disappear and in their place, farms scattered over crop fields.

"How did you know it was him?" she asked shortly after he took a detour towards the seaside. Her favourite place.

Joseph snorted "It's always about him, Phil" and immediately regretted the tone of his voice "Sorry"

She drew a sympathetic smile when their eyes met at the rear view mirror and looked away.

"I just thought things could get better with him, you know. He had promised he was going to change. God I'm so stupid, Joe"

A light drizzle was threatening to fall and he immediately put the heater on. "What happened?"

"Everything was a lie"

"Everything? What do you mean?" he asked, not fully comprehending.

"He never went to that anger management counsellor. For 6 bloody months he's been going God knows where twice a week while I thought he was trying hard to get better. For him and for us"

"Shit" he muttered

"But there's more" she carried on after she drying her eyes again "All the money from our shared account is gone."

"What?"

"Yeah. Three years of savings, MY savings, wasted"

"Jesus Phil"

He had reached the end of the road he had been driving and instead of turning around, he decided to pull over. When he switched off the engine he unbuckled his seat belt to be able to turn around and look at her "I… I don't know what to say"

She smiled sadly and looked down at her lap "I've never felt so stupid in my whole life"

"Hey, don't say that" he said placing is hand over hers "You are not stupid, Lissy. You are the most amazing woman I know and as I said, he's a wanker who should kiss the ground you walk on"

Phyllis rolled her eyes but couldn't help but smile at his endearment and laced his fingers with hers.

"What are you going to do?" he enquired tentatively looking at their joined hands.

She sighed in defeat "I have no idea. Truth is, I don't even know if I really want to go back to our place"

"Come live with me" he blurted without properly thinking.

Those four words left her speechless. "I… I mean, until you find something" he added hastily "I have a spare room and you know it's close to your workplace"

"Joe, I don't know what to say"

"Hey, we are friends, aren't we?" he asked smiling

"Yeah"

"And friends are there for each other"

She rolled her eyes good naturally and nodded.

"Then just say yes" he pleaded hopefully and she saw something in his eyes that stirred a warmth within her. A wonderful feeling she began to wish that it never faded away. Just like the feeling of being safe whenever she was with him.

"OK" she breathed


	2. It reminded me of you

**2 - It reminded me of you**

As every Saturday evening, they were in his bed, basking in the afterglow of a long, unhurried love-making, with her head resting on his chest and tucked protectively under his chin. Lulled by the sound of his steady heartbeat, she was on the verge of falling asleep when she heard him sigh contentedly. When she looked up at him, she couldn't help but smile at the sight of pure satisfaction of his face.

Their newly born relationship had come as a shock to her. But she couldn't be happier. His shy, demure workmate had entered into her life revealing himself also as a passionate, sweet caring man who tried his best to put her happiness over his own.

Warmth began to pool on her lower stomach as fragments of memories of him taking her over the edge emerged on her mind. And God, he was good at that.

She was about to surrender to the desire of kissing his throat when the book placed in his nightstand caught her attention. Carefully, she moved over him to fetch it.

\- Joe? What's this?

\- Hmm? What? His voice was drowsy and when he opened his eyes it was evident that sleep had almost claimed him. "Oh, that's a book" he answered in a serious-mocking tone "You know... People read the words in them. Fantastic activity if you ask me"

Phyllis muttered a swear under her breath and swatted him lightly at his hip with her free hand, eliciting a chuckle from him "I mean why do you have this book in particular? Since I've been here I've never seen a fiction novel. All you have is history books all over the place"

"Oh right" he conceded taking the book from her hands and examined the cover from his half closed eyes.

"Did you buy it?"

"Actually I borrowed from my sister. She's in some sort of book club and after reading one from this author, she got obsessed and bought her entire collection"

Phyllis smiled remembering the stories Joseph had told her about his crazy sister. Secretly, she couldn't wait to meet her.

"I went to her place the other day" he carried on "and she couldn't stop praising this woman and her work. Seriously Phyllis, it was driving me mad, so I pretended interest, hoping she would stop talking sooner and what I got was this book shoved into my hands. But then, when I read the plot at the back, I found out that it could be a good one, so I decided to give it a chance"

"What is it about?"

He moved to a sitting position, bringing her into his embrace "Oh, it's about this mixed race woman who lives in South Florida in the beginning of the 20th century and who fights against gender stereotypes for her independence"

"Sounds interesting" she conceded.

"Oh, it is. And although she has a fair share of men who love her and want to be with her, there's this deep need of her to find her own identity without them that comes first. That's the best part; that she's strong and proud of herself despite of all the bumps on the road"

Phylis was entranced at the image of him defending the protagonist so vehemently. Was feminist another good trait on his list of good qualities? When he finished talking, a small blush appeared on his face.

"What is it?" she asked, mirroring his small smile.

"Actually, there's another reason I took this book with me"

She arched her eyebrows in curiosity and moved away from his embrace to be able to look at him. He left the book on the nightstand and used his now free hand to caress her cheek. "This girl and her story… It kind of reminded me of you"

She gasped and her eyes went wide at his unexpected confession.

"When I was reading the summary all I could think about was everything you had told me about your past. How you moved away from your parents when they try to impose you a future you loathed; having ended a toxic relationship with you abusive ex… Reading this has been like understanding a little bit better what you've gone through Lissy and you have no idea how much I like that."

She had stopped looked at him to focus absentmindedly at her hand caressing his chest and when she looked back at him, he had concern written all over his face. She closed the distance between them and kissed him softly.

"It is amazing how you always manage to charm me all over, even without trying it" she whispered lovingly.

"Well" he took her hand in his and muttered jokingly "I hope I can be as charming when I actually intend it to be"

"Oh you certainly are" she purred, nuzzling his neck before kissing him hungrily. When they parted, he had this dreamy look on his face as he gathered back into his arms.

"So, maybe you would like to read it after I finish it. Seriously, there's this part where…"

She placed a finger against his lips to shut him up and moved to straddle him and whisper in his ear.

"I think we're done talking, Joe. Right now I'd rather you to keep… charming me"

And he did.

* * *

 **In case you're wondering, the book Joe was reading was "Their eyes were watching God" by Zora Neale Hudson**


	3. No no It's my treat

**3 - No no. It's my treat**

The plan sounded relatively simple in that analytical head of his. Pick her up at her place, maybe a couple of longing but chaste kisses and then take her to the restaurant.

He hadn't counted on how much he had missed her those last two months he had been away; her devious smile, her dark hair falling down her shoulders, the sweetness of her kisses… He definitely hadn't counted on how sexy she looked on that black dress the moment she opened the door.

Grabbing him by the lapel of his jacket, she pulled him inside and after shutting the door with her foot, she pinned him against it.

He certainly hadn't counted on how much she had missed him; the abiding gleam in his eyes, his skewed shirt-collar, the scent of his cologne, the softness of his fingers on her neck and lower back…

There wasn't a couple of chaste kisses but a dozen of urgent, passionate ones that fuelled the hunger for each another. Visions of the well prepared plan crossed briefly through his mind, but they faded away as soon as her tongue traced his earlobe. After that, it didn't take long for them to stumble into her bedroom to make it up for lost time, just forgetting everything else.

"What had you planned?" she asked later, lying on her stomach beside him.

"I had reservations for that new French restaurant. I guess we missed them"

She bit her lip and murmured an apology leaning over him and kissing his chest.

He chuckled and took her face in his hands before kissing her soundly "Don't you dare. It was more than worth it"

"Still" she replied, tracing a pattern on his skin with her finger "It's a shame. We could have been part of the 'fancy people who went to L'Astrance in its first month' elite group"

He emitted a sound of agreement that it was almost muted with the growling sound from his stomach.

"We have to do something about that, though" she said

He waved his hand dismissively "Don't worry. I'll get something from your fridge later"

She snorted "Trust me. You don't want to eat anything from my fridge right now"

Joe raised his eyebrows and he was about to ask her about it, but eventually decided against it. He followed her from the bed as she got up and moved to her wardrobe. "Come on. Get dressed" she said resolutely.

"What?"

"Get dressed. We're going out to eat something"

Joe groaned but did what he was told "Phyllis, it's almost midnight. Where are we going to get something to eat now?"

He remained frozen in his spot while watching her putting on some worn-out jeans and a black shirt. Rolling her eyes good naturally, she approached him across the room.

"Do you trust me?" caressing his cheek.

He nodded closing his eyes and kissing his palm.

"Then get dressed"

* * *

No less than 15 minutes later, they had reached their destination. Just around a corner, hidden in a dark and dingy alley, there was a small cafeteria.

"Here we are" she said, tugging him lightly inside.

Contrary to what it may seem from the outside, the place was clean and in a very good condition. Apart from a lonely customer sat in one corner, they were completely alone. An short, plump woman came out from the kitchen drawn by the sound of the door opening and closing.

"Hello Susan" Phyllis said beaming at her.

"Phyllis! My dear girl, how have you been?" the woman exclaimed approaching the couple to give Phyllis a big hug.

"I'm fine. How about you and Harry?"

"Oh we can't complain. Life's still being kind to us. And who's this nice chap you're bringing?" she asked smiling at Joe.

"Oh, this is Joe. Joe this is Susan, a very good friend of mine"

"Nice to meet you" Joe replied shaking the woman's hand.

"Nice to meet you too. So, what's going to be dear?" Susan asked looking back at Phyllis.

"A couple of coffees and… is there some of that amazing carrot cake?"

The woman nodded heartily and added while she headed back to the kitchen "I'll have two pieces ready in no time, love".

Phyllis took Joe's hand and led him to a table. "Now. I don't know if you like carrot cake or not, but I'm sure you're going to love this one"

He laughed and took his wallet out from his pocket "I like carrot cake and it's been years since I ate it, so I'd say you've made a good choice. Here" He said handing her some money, which she didn't take.

"No, no. It's my treat"

"But I was supposed to treat you tonight" he argued trying to make her accept it.

"No mister. You missed your chance when you decided to seduce me into bed" She replied cheekily, kissing him swiftly before walking back to the counter to wait for their order.

Five minutes later they had two steaming mugs of coffee and a couple of generous portions of carrot cake in front of them. She waited for his reaction at the first bite, before start eating.

"Oh my God, this is delicious!" he exclaimed groaning with pleasure.

"I know" she said, smiling knowingly from behind her coffee mug.

"Seriously, where do they buy the ingredients? Heaven?"

She laughed "I have no idea. They don't share their secret. Even with me. But…" she added leaning conspiratorially over the table "… I think it has to do with the fresh cheese and the cinnamon"

"Good God" he murmured taking another bite. "How did you find this place?"

"Susan and Harry were close friends with my aunt. When they retired, instead of travelling around the world, they decided to invest their savings on a lifelong dream; buying and running a small coffee shop. Not many people know about this place, but they have enough daily customers to keep the business going"

"Well" he replied after swallowing the last piece of cake "You tell them that Joseph Molesley is going to be a regular one around here from now on"

She took his hand in hers "So you like it?" she asked hopefully.

He smiled lovingly at her "Of course I like it. Thank you for taking me here"

"I wasn't half sure you would. I mean… It can't be compared with the place you wanted to go…"

"You're right. It can't be compared" he replied squeezing his hand "We won't be able to be part of the 'fancy people who went to the L'Astrance in its first month' elite group yet but we can always say that we've found the best coffee place whose location is top secret. That will be fancy enough"

He released her hand and stood up to go to the counter.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm not leaving this place until I try that delicious cake again"


	4. Let me fix it

**4 - Let me fix it**

The New Year's party at the Bates' had been running smoothly. And the best part of it was that she had been able to spend a lot of time with Joseph Molesley. They had talked, laughed and even danced together. See had secretly hoped that, sometime during this gathering they could find some sort of courage that help them redefine their relationship. She was positive that it could be a reality by the looks and smiles they had been giving each other all evening.

Maybe after the party (and if the courage hasn't died down) she would ask him to come to her place to celebrate more privately.

That, if he came back from wherever he had gone thirty minutes ago. John and Anna's place wasn't so big and she was sure he hadn't left as his car was still parked outside. Still, she hadn't been able to find him.

Lost in her thoughts, she startled when she felt a hand on her upper arm. It was Anna.

"Phyllis, you alright? You seem a little bit worried"

She shook her hear and smiled "Don't worry. It's nothing. Shall I help you with anything?"

"Oh, that would be great. Thank you"

She followed Anna to the kitchen and while the host gathered more food from the fridge, Phyllis went on the task to find some plates.

"How have you been feeling? Is it the baby already misbehaving?"

Anna laughed and patted her growing belly "John is convinced we're having a future Manchester United star"

"That… or a tap dancer"

Their inhibited laughs kept them from seeing John coming into the kitchen.

"Sorry to interrupt ladies". The man approached them and placed his hand around Anna's shoulder "It's Joe. I think he had some sort of 'incident'"

"Oh my God, is he ok?" Anna asked leaving everything she had on her hands over the kithen counter.

"Yeah, nothing serious… I think. He's in the laundry room"

The two women looked at each other in confusion for a moment before Anna started walking to see if she could help, Phyllis stopped her.

"Don't worry. I'll go. You two should go back to the party with the rest of the guests"

She didn't encounter anyone on her way downstairs. The laundry room door was partly opened and tentatively, she knocked on the casing, not wanting to disturb him. "Joe? It's me, Phyllis. Can I come in?"

After a few seconds, she could hear what she hoped was an affirmative sound. When she entered she saw him in the corner with his back to her.

"Something wrong?" she asked.

The man sighed and slowly turned around. "Sort of… I… I just spilled wine all over my leg"

Her eyes wondered down until they spotted the not-so-small stain on his inner and front thigh.

"Oh"

He cringed at her expression and went on "I came here trying to find something to remove it only to realize that I have no idea what I could use. And with my luck rate, I would probably worsen it"

Phyllis smiled "I think I can help you"

"How?"

"I know a few tricks to remove wine. Come on, take off your trousers before the stain dries"

Shock couldn't even begin to describe Joe's expression "I… I'm not sure… I don't think that would… I could leave it like that"

"Don't be ridiculous, Joe. If you don't clean them, those trousers will be useless after tonight. I know what to do. Let me fix it"

The uneasiness planted on his face didn't face away.

"Joe. I hate to remind you this but… I've already seen you naked"

His eyes opened impossibly wide at her statement but then he remembered; the past Christmas celebrations on the countryside included drinking a little bit too much and then joining the much younger group of men as they undressed and went skinny dipping to the lake.

"Don't worry. I just need the trousers. Your decency will remain intact" she assured him.

Slowly, he took them off and handed them to her while muttering something about the impossibility of that. She swiftly turned around to spare him a bit from further embarrasement. After she left the stain to soak under the tap, she began to look through every cabinet in the room for something she could use.

Meanwhile, he had found a stool to sit on and watched her intently. This wasn't what he had planned for the evening at all. He had managed to have her around most of the time. Now, with this, hopes for a romantic outcome had vanished. As usual.

"Seriously. It's not that bad. It happens to all us" she said without looking at him, as if she had been listening his thoughts.

"Yeah right" he muttered.

She rolled her eyes and turned to him "Three years ago at my niece's birthday party. I slipped on a toy. Birthday cake all over my white dress"

His eyes opened wide in mild surprise "Really?"

"Really. And all that in front of a family friend, who I used to fancy at that time"

He chuckled lightly.

"Besides, it's not like you have ugly legs" she added winking at him.

"Stop" he warned in a mocking tone while smiling at her carefree laugh as she knelt to inspect the lower cabinets.

"Aha. Found it" she exclaimed as she retrieved a small bottle of peroxide.

"Will that do?" he asked.

"I think so. Hand me the trousers, would you?"

He stood next to her as she poured the liquid over the stain. "And now, we put them on the heated towel rail and wait for them to dry"

She grabbed another stool to sit beside him. "See? Problem solved"

He smirked "Yeah. In exchanged for that, I completely made a fool of myself in front of you"

"I don't think you're a fool, Joe."

"It's just…"

She sensed there was some importance in what he wanted to say, so she gave him the time he needed.

"… everything was going fine. We were having a great time together…"

"It was just an accident" she insisted.

"… and I end up ruining everything"

"You didn't"

He look at her in disbelief.

"You didn't Joe" she repeated, more serious this time and followed him as he stood up and walked to the other side of the room "I'm still having a great time with you"

She put a hand on his shoulder trying to ease him. "I wouldn't have stayed after cleaning the stain if I thought otherwise. Joe, I like spending time with you. Here, upstairs, or even on a bloody junkyard"

He smiled and took her hand in his. "I like spending time you too"

She smiled back and somehow managed to tear her eyes from Joe's to inspect the trousers. As she expected, no trace of wine could be seen on them.

"Amazing" he marvelled inspecting the area and whispered sort of unconsciously "You are amazing"

She grabbed the trousers and put them over the counter. They were so close now.

"Phyllis? Joe? Still there? Only ten minutes for New Year's!" Anna's voice echoed from the top of the stairs.

"We should head back" she said sliding her arms around his waist.

"Yeah I think we should" he replied caressing her cheek before moving his hand into her hair. "But I much rather stay here"

"Let's stay then" she whispered inches from his lips and closing the gap, not before adding. "Happy New Year, Joe"


End file.
